| Soleron said:
1. It doesn't get viruses Linux is more secure than Windows, and doesn't suffer from any known viruses. Spyware and other malware is much less common than on Windows, and it is normally not neccessary to use additional programs to stop viruses. 2. It's faster than Windows Linux is more efficient than Windows: it is faster from boot up to your first application and each application runs faster while using less memory and resources than Windows equivalents. Linux can even run 3D desktop effects on very old hardware, and is usable on machines that can't even run XP. 3. It looks better than Windows, and you can customise it more Linux has much better graphical effects than Windows, such as the cube rotate and wobbly windows effects. To see a demonstration, see http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxfSwzhSn1c&fmt=18. These effects don't impact performance very much, even on older computers, but they do make using the computer faster and easier. You can also customise Linux more: Windows doesn't allow themes without hacking, but Linux has thousands of themes that can be installed with one click and give your desktop a new look instantly. 4. It's free Every time Microsoft releases a new version of Windows, you are forced to pay $200 just to keep playing your games and using Office. Linux is free and does almost everything Windows does, and new versions don't cost anything either! 5. Its applications are free Most Linux equivalents of Windows applications are free too, and for the average user provide all the same functionality. Linux comes with a fully-featured office suite (OpenOffice) that handles MS Office documents, a professional graphics editor that is on par with Photoshop (GIMP), an Outlook equivalent (Evolution) and thousands of other professional applications, free. 6. It's easier to use out of the box Every time you install Windows, you have to go and download Flash, Java, Adobe PDF reader, an instant messenger, an archive manager that reads RAR files, and office suite and other things. With Linux, all of this stuff is already included for free, and is often better (for example, the PDF viewer on Linux is much faster than Adobe's). If you don't like messing with drivers, Linux is also better because all of the drivers are preinstalled. You just put the CD in and it all works. 7. It's easier to install new programs Windows programs often have a maze of websites and installers to go through before you can get anything installed. With Linux, 20,000+ free programs (everything you ever need) are availible with a single mouse click which downloads and installs in one. |
1. I haven't had a Windows virus in over 5 years.
2. After trying SuSE, Ubuntu, Fedora, and a couple others I can honestly say that unless I'm running a stripped down GUI model that it's not faster. In fact, pulling up notepad in Windows is faster than just about every GUI editting program I've used on a linux distro.
3. This point is a pretty big lie especially on old PCs. For example, Beryl becomes a huge performance hog as you increase the amount of stuff it does. Just try the flames effect and watch older PCs struggle to perform. If you're not doing anything that fancy then Stardock can match it without a noticeable performance decrease.
4. Free versus a sunk cost doesn't lead to an advantage. Unless you're building your own box (in which case the person would be savvy enough to make his/her own decisions), the average person is buying a box and getting Windows included in the package.
5. Many great OSS applications on Linux have Windows counterparts. Why be stuck with GIMP when I can have GIMP and Photoshop if I want? Heck, I can also play real PC games while I'm at it. Woo hoo!
6. So either I install them separately after the OS or I install them with the OS. I usually do it the former on my linux machines anyway. If it's my box I'd rather get things as I need them instead of carrying a lot of bloat that I don't need.
7. If by maze you mean a single installer then... well... then your point doesn't make sense. Linux installations are only easy if you have a repository to install from. Good luck to the poor novice trying to figure out make install on his/her own.
